I think that not announcing the exact location is meant to test the charity between KCK (Kansas) and KCMO (Missouri) members. As we can see, from only two comments, the rivalry has commenced! (Lee’s Summit is on the Missouri side).

There is a new Stake Center (just dedicated last week) in Lee’s Summit and building went smoothly with cooperation from the city. On the other hand the city of Lenexa (Kansas site) is holding up a new stake center there. I’m not arguing that the church builds where it is easy, just an interesting data point.

I voted for Liberty. While it’s true that the best neighborhoods are on the Kansas side, Overland Park, etc., I live 20 min. from the Winter Quarters temple which is in what is arguably the worst part of Omaha. There have been 5 or 6 deadly shootings within a couple miles of the temple the last month or two. Anyway, it seemed like the Church went out of it’s way to put the temple near this the cemetary.

There’s a lot of cool places it could be with historical significance. It’d be interesting to see it at Independence itself, behind the stake center, but hey, if you’re going to include Far West, how about Adam-ondi-ahman?

I think it will be in Kansas City, KS somewhere; as the church will have a ton of people looking to pack up and head to Zion if it were in Jackson County somewhere. I too am excited; did you all here the silence come over the congeration as President Monson made that announcment.

Here’s another vote for the Lenexa/Overland Park/Shawnee Mission side of things. Just like the Seattle temple is actually in well-off Bellevue, the Portland temple is actually in well-off Lake Oswego. As much as I would love it if it were to be in Far West (as I’m only about 5 minutes from there), I just don’t see that happening. They would have to do too much paving, zoning changes, no doubt, and it’s just too far off the beaten path, I think. Regardless, I’m just so thrilled it’s coming at all. We love Nauvoo and all, but I won’t miss the 4 hour drive, or the fuel costs to get there.

I think the new temple will be built in Lee’s Summit or it could even possibly be THE Independence complex of temples. These are the last days…we’ll see. The Kansas City Saints have been waiting a long time for a near temple. I’m so excited…

Lots of people I know in the “Mormon corridor” at this point view the Independence temple as little more than a formality (if they believe it will be built at all). “Zion”, for them, will always be Utah–at least unless/until the Church officially moves its headquarters.

I think ldschurchtemples.com is a wonderful site, but it isn’t an official church site. The author does mimic the layout of lds.org, so that can make it hard to tell. I think he might just be making an assumption that the temple will be on the Missouri side.

Sigh. I wish it weren’t going into Johnson county- the RICHEST, whitest, most advantaged, and most corporate county in the state. Look at the kids Count Datababook, City and County Stats, Statistical Abstract, or something like that. JoCo isn’t representative of the rest of Kansas. a clear outlier in nearly everything. What would be wrong with improving blighted parts of the city (as the Ogden Temple did)? What about a peaceful prairie setting or something set against the wheat?

This is exciting! Have any of you locals heard of Shoal Creek Valley? It is a Traditional Neighborhood Development just northeast of downtown KC. Well, I just found out this week it is owned by the church’ s real estate management company: Zion Securities. The church already owns a huge chunk of land that they are developing into a wonderful little town. So it makes sense to me that the temple would be there. My husband is getting out of the military soon and we’ve been looking at this community as our place to settle. Now with the temple announcement we are thrilled.

This sounds wildly off topic, but to the one it is addressed to, it will not be:

Someone talked to me months ago about Danielsen Implement. I’ve been running across them left and right recently, but I can’t remember who was studying that. If that person reads this because of the KC temple announcement, please get in touch.

@30: MoJo, I don’t dispute that generally. But I would take issue with the assertion that building on the Temple Lot would be mere “competition”–to my understanding, our prophecies still state that a temple must be built there under the proper priesthood authority prior to the Millennium. (For the record, though, I don’t think the Greater Kansas City Area temple will be that temple.)

My point was just that I don’t think the sensibilities of the CoC per se are a legitimate determining factor as to whether the Church builds on its portion of the Temple Lot (except, of course, insofar as they may play into local politics, zoning disputes, etc).

JimD, I agree that this is probably not THE temple to be on the temple lot, but what I’m saying about competition is the massive scale of the two buildings that flank the Independence stake center “complex.” They are MASSIVE.

On the west side is the RLDS auditorium, which is a beautiful piece of architecture.

On the north side is the RLDS temple, which is even more dwarfing. You can see it for miles and miles and miles.

I was saying that putting it between those two buildings (that aren’t ours) would be…I don’t know…cheapening the effort. Something like that.

The church does own a lot of land around Liberty (and Kansas City 64157/64158) including land around the Shoal Creek Subdivisions. Our stake president had announced a year ago that they bought land in the Shoal Creek area for a new stakes center, but recently he told my husband the church had sold that plot of land.

The church owns lots of land around here. More than most know about. The same is true in Independence, and other places in MO (and probably in KS as well)

We live in this area, and of course would LOVE a temple here, but we’re just glad they would have a temple in the Greater KC area at all! Driving 5 minutes or 50 mintues is still a great blessing for us!

JStapley – I think I know you. Were you on the Liberty Stake Youth Committee in the ’90s? If so, we used to carpool. My name was Lori Tubbs then.

I don’t think CofC leaders would be even slightly offended if an LDS temple was built near the Independence VC, across from the CofC temple. When the CofC temple was planned, the LDS church owned a substantial portion of the land (now gardens surrounding the CofC temple), and had done nothing but use it as additional parking. The LDS church traded that portion of land to the CofC, in exchange for the Nauvoo Pioneer Cemetery, which up until then had been in CofC ownership. In other words, the CofC temple would not have its full grounds complex, if not for the cooperation of the LDS church in making the real estate available.

I believe it will be in Olathe. The New York Times ran a large story several months ago about Olathe being one of 3 cities in the US where people will pay more than 30% of their earnings to live there. NYC, LA and Olathe Kansas. Plus, like Nauvoo, Olathe is an Indian name which means “beautiful place”. It will be in Olathe.

The Church is one of the largest private landowners in Jackson County MO, even all of Kansas City, so there are many areas where the temple could be built. My guess is probably somewhere in Johnson County, KS. The church tends to build temples in quiter, high-class neighborhoods so that pretty much rules out near the stadiums and large parts of Jax county. Also, the land for the Lenexa KS stake center is way more than is needed for a stake center. I think it’s somewhere around 40 acres. But, its all speculation on my part. We’ll see soon enough. What I do know is that we in my house are all extremely thankful to the Lord for his beneficence.

As I eluded to above, the Church has gone out of its way to put temples in places of historical significance if available (Winter Quarters, Nauvoo, Palmyra!). So with all of the history around the area, I just can’t see them foregoing that opportunity and building it in the suburbs.

Nick #47 – thanks for clarifying the history of that area. It is encouranging to hear that we are getting along there.
If it is built in Overland Park, I hope it is close to the Deanna Rose Children’s Farmstead, because that would be an ideal place to take the kids while a spouse does a session.

It is my ever-so-humble opinion that to avoid a wacko-Utah-mormon mass exodus the brethren will avoid putting the Temple in Jax county. You guys stay out there in happy valley, we’re doing just fine thanx.

I’ve lived in Overland Park and been a member of the Olathe Stake for 18 years. I don’t think the temple will be in Olathe for a couple of reasons. 1) There’s no room in Olathe, and 2) Olathe is a dump compared to its neighboring cities.

lori and mojo. that guy from zions securities has been attending our ward for the last few weeks, and the developer of shoal creek has been here also lately. zona rosa or shoal creek. you can take it to the bank.

It’s a Fact- The temple will be built BETWEEN LAWRENCE AND LEAWOOD…My friends Dad works for the church and helped pick the site. It will be located on Highway 10 about 1/3 the distance to the west of Leawood. He said it will be built on a small hill and will be amazing to see…

JRM, that is the land the where the Lenexa Stake Center is trying to be built correct? It’s the South-East corner of the 435 loop and close to where I35 crosses 435 as well. If we step out of our KC centric thinking and consider Lawrence, Topeka, and Witchita, it makes sense to have it down that way. If only I hadn’t moved from K7/K10 to Liberty…. It’d be 5 minutes instead of 45 minutes.

The Church owns a huge piece of land on the north side of Lee’s Summit. The city of Lee’s Summit have been after the Church to sell the land for some time. I guess they feel land-locked. I feel that the Temple will be either in that location, north of Lee’s Summit, or on the Kansas side.

None of the above.I would say either Lee’s Summit, MO or somewhere in Johnson County, KS (which is not Kansas City, KS for those who are not from here and is, incidentally, not across the river from KCMO).

For clarification, the new Lenexa Stake Center is being built at about 101st & Lone Elm, not far from the K-7 & K-10 interchange. Living in Lenexa, I would love to see it there. However, the Church had a rough time even getting all the stupid city approvals just to build the stake center so building the temple in Lenexa might make it take longer to build.

I’m voting for JOCO. In fact, there are some nice pieces of land by us off 167th and Antioch! But seriously, by the Lenexa stake center makes a lot of sense for those in KS who live outside the greater metro area.
But really, I don’t care where it’s built! We’re getting a temple!! Having lived here in the area for the past 12 years I really didn’t think we’d ever see one. Who cares, as long as it’s in the metro?
Although it is nice to speculate…and who doesn’t like it closer? Chant with me-JOCO, JOCO (of course, if this had been announced when we lived in Platte County you would have heard me chanting the opposite).

#68 I know exactly what hill along K-10 you speak of! I used to get chills every time I drove past there and always thought to myself that it was a little piece of the Garden of Eden. If it’s been chosen, I’m not surprised. It feels like a sacred place.

I also have been watching the Shoal Creek and Lee’s Summit pieces of land. I felt compelled less than two weeks ago to drive out and look at one of them…8000 acres in Lee’s Summit. It sort of sweeps downward and though very close to the highway, it’s not as prominent a piece of land.

I have often thought that finishing the Far West Temple would be a good way to provide a temple for that area without invoking millennial panic. I’ve never been there, but it appears to be only 3-4 miles off the interstate and less than an hour from KC. Are those really unpaved roads? I can’t tell from the satellite photos. I see lots of churches built in remote rural areas like that, so it surprises me that zoning would be a problem. Apparently, there’s a CofC church there already. If we build the temple on the site of the existing cornerstones, it probably wouldn’t be much bigger than the existing church that evidently passed zoning.

Far West, hands down. We don’t own the spot for the teple in Independence that was to be where the firs temple was to be built in that complex. But Independence would be my second choice, there is no real reason to build it somewhere else when you have two spots in the area picked by God already.

If it was going to be Far West, why wouldn’t they just announce it as the Far West Temple rather than something in the greater Kansas City area? I live in the greater Kansas City area and Far West is 90 miles from me and surrounded by corn fields. It would be the wildest stretch of the imagination to think that Far West is in the greater Kansas City area.

I didn’t hear the announcement, but I can’t figure out why a temple in Rome would produce an audible gasp, while one potentially in Jackson County wouldn’t. Perhaps nobody knows that KC is in Jackson Co.?

I’m sure there are church buildings of various denominations (including our own) in Rome already. I don’t see how it would be so stunning to have one more. I can’t imagine the Vatican even giving it much notice, any more than the Church Office Building would be all atwitter about the audacity of a new Catholic church being built in Salt Lake.

I spoke with a Bishop in Lenexa 4 years ago and he mentioned the plan to build a stake center and temple together on K10 in Lenexa. The Stake Center has already been started. Here is the address:
21515W 101st St,Lenexa,Ks

I’ve wondered when this would come. After all, I figured that KC was the largest metropolitan area in the US with enough stakes to support a temple (and not the smallest model) where members still had to drive 4 hours to a temple. The west side makes the most sense geographicaly, since there will likely be only 1 stake east of KC in the temple district, while to the west the district will presumably include all of Kansas – half way to Denver, the nearest temple that direction now. And I side with those who say that if the intention was to build at Independence, Liberty, or Far West (heaven forbid – way too remote! It’s bad enough that we build temples in urban areas that can’t be reached via transit), Pres. Monson would have said so.

Hey Parley P, I sure don’t claim to know all the details and all the facts. I’m simply repeating the explanation from the man who helped the church pick the site. I just wanted to share with those who are as excited as I am and who really want to know the location.

ReedRosin, I think you’re right on- It makes sense to build a temple near a stake center and that location seems to fit the description I was given.

It will go in at I-470 and Strother Road, a new interchange about to be constructed south of I-470 and Woods Chapel in Lee’s Summit, MO. The land on the east side of 470 has been saved from development for this very reason.

Oh, and all the nice areas of the city are not in KCK. KCK is probably the single worst area of town. JOCO is suburbs, but it’s not any nicer than the new parts of the Northland or Lee’s Summit.

Why does it have to go in the suburbs anyway? It could also go in urban KCMO which is the best part of the metro. It could really tie into a nice historic area of town. Even the Downtown area would be sweet.

Oh my. So much debate and contention over such an incredible blessing. It really doesn’t matter where the temple goes. Just that it will be built in such a close location to us all – and we’ll all receive wonderful blessings. Let the Church figure out the location. They’ll announce it when they are ready. Let’s just enjoy knowing it’s coming. Yeah!!!

#98 and #100 – my Mom says an attempt to purchase land in Lenexa for a temple fell through 18 months ago. The land for the new stake center for Lenexa has similarly had issues. ;) The place I pictured for the temple is actually two miles west of the new Lenexa stake center, which will be completed in 2009, but it makes a lot of sense that the two would be near each other especially for parking, having a “visitor’s-type” center, security, etc.. Lenexa was my stake until five weeks ago. The stake center land is about 9.1 acres with the building size planned at 24,500 sqft. I’m in the KC, MO stake now and we just dedicated a new stake center a couple weeks ago., that is in Lee’s Summit, but NOT near the 8000 acres of Church land in that city. If there was going to be a temple soon in Lee’s Summit I would have thought the two would be nearer each other. I’m guessing Lenexa is the place.

Oh, and if you look at the states nearby that have at least one temple, most do. Kansas needs one :)

I have lived in the KC area all of my life. Wherever the temple is to be built in the KC area will be a great and wonderful blessing. Temples are built on pretty small plots of land. There are temples built on less than 15 acres in the middle of cities and out in more open locations, so speculation is a wonderful thing, but the most exciting thing about it all is that we will be able to enjoy the blessings of the temple and learn more about our divine heritage more often with temple attendance. I am so excited! Besides, President Monson will announce the exact location when the time is right. Until then, all we can really do is guess.

I would say Overland Park, or Lenexa area would be really nice. I served my mission in the Independence area, so I have a soft spot for that area. Im super excited for the people there, I know how they feel, considering we’re finally getting a temple only 30 mins from here, in Langley BC.

While it’s fun to speculate, the brethren who know are not going to be telling their cousin’s kid’s roomate’s neighbor, or participating in on-line discussions. So, it’s kind of futile to guess. They know we’re anxious to find out; we’ve waited this long for a temple to be announced in KC so what’s another little while going to hurt us?

WOw, I stand corrected. It will be in Clay County- the church’s website states it. I’m even more excited since my family is in Blue Springs and Excelsior Springs. I still believe there will be a temple in Lenexa area at some point. We are so blessed….

I looked at the press release and was interested to see the location of the Philadelphia temple listed as Broad Street and Spring Street. As far as I can tell, there is no such place. Someone needs to take another look at the map.

Rats. Now we’ll have to drive a whopping 45 minutes to the temple instead of the 25 we’d hoped for (if it were to be built in Lenexa). Heehee. Just kidding!
Shoal Creek is a beautiful area and we can’t wait for it to be built!!

#121, I had the same trouble trying to locate the site in Philadelphia, but it looks like they have revised the description to a place on North Broad Street that actually exists. It appears to be a parking lot now.

I’ve barely been to Philadelphia myself, but North Broad Street sounded familiar. It turns out that Baker Bowl (former home of the Phillies) was on the corner of North Broad and Lehigh, a couple miles north of the temple site. Yes, I am a baseball junkie.

Maybe they should have tried to put the temple on the site of Baker Bowl, what with that already being sacred ground and all. There’s already a megachurch on the site of Shibe Park (aka Connie Mack Stadium), former home of both the Athletics and the Phillies, a few blocks away down Lehigh Street.

The Shoal Creek area, while being near the Liberty Jail, is also near the Alexander Doniphan memorial highway. Kind of interesting that the man who refused to execute Joseph Smith would be so close to the new temple – Doniphan is burried in the nearby city of Liberty.

Yes, I guessed right! Way back on post #32! Maybe it helps that I’m not a local, I didn’t get caught up in the speculation! LOL We felt inspired to settle in Shoal Creek before we ever knew the church owned the land or the temple was ever announced, thinking we’d have to wait awhile for a closer temple. Now don’t ya’ll snatch up all the houses around it! :) Leave a little spot for a partially-disabled vet and his great family!

I served my mission in that area 76-78. I know how happy all of the members must be.
I live in now Houston since ’84 and I remember how I felt when I came in to the General Priesthood Session to hear that Houston would get a temple. Houston temple is about 30 minutes drive from my house. Dallas was 4 hours, and that was the closest I had ever lived to a temple before Houston was built.
I grew up in Albuquerque and Twin Falls and would have been less than 15 minutes drive from both of those. But that’s ok. The Lord blesses those that live the commandments and are faithful.

Don’t get me wrong, wherever it is I’m glad we’re getting a temple so close, but I’m curious if anyone can clarify the location, is it really at the intersection of I-435 and Shoal Creek? Is it east or west?

Kulturblog

Time to update Susan’s post from August of 07. “They say that these are not the best of times, But they’re the only times I’ve ever known. And I believe there is a time for meditation In cathedrals of our own.” -Billy Joel, Summer Highland Falls

NOTE: This is an essay I wrote as an undergraduate at the University of Utah almost thirty years ago. I am republishing it here as a remembrance of my favorite professor, Mark Strand, upon the occasion of his passing. Come from the four winds, O breath, and breathe upon these slain, that they may live… […]